How do you test a coil pack? - Cars & Trucks

Depending on the type of coil pack you car has, here are a couple of test technique:
How to Test an Ignition Coil Pack Best Testing Procedure

Automotive Engine Ignition Coil Testing Repair

Stephanie, Check the attached links,instruction and guides on testing GM coil packs, Good luck
"I hope this helped you out, if so let me know by pressing the helpful button. Check out some of my other posts if you need more tips and info."
http://easyautodiagnostics.com/gm/2.2L/how-to-test-the-ignition-coil-pack-1
Going to test the coil packs tomorrow How Saturn Spot
http://diagnosecarproblems.blogspot.ca/2009/04/how-to-test-ignition-coil-on-1999.html

Hi Joey,here's a link on testing your coil pack. How to Test the Ignition Coil Pack Chrysler 2 0L 2 4L

what country? this is the WWW, post country for better answers.......!
Only a scope can see the fast 5mS signals to the coil.
so its either the coil pack or the ECU blown. (wires are always suspect)
you never said , all 4 are dead, or 1 or 2, and how many packs.
some non usa cars have wasted (2pak) spark , not 4 COPS.
state what cylinders have spark and which don't.
there are only 2 ways to fix cars.
1: guess and swap parts
2: use tools. my guess is you dont have them.
some coil packs are active (ignitor inside) others just a coil.
you can test the restance of the coils, with a DMM , ohm meter.
if active you cant.
the fsm covers this on all cars.
https://suzukipitstopplus.com/category/3-suzuki-service-manuals.aspx
the 2006 Forenza as delivered to USA has.....
has a large single, dual wasted spark coil pack. (brick)
it does in fact have , internal ignitor drivers. inside. so can not be tested
with and ohm meter on the primary side. but can be on the secondary
you do know how to test wasted spark , right, All spark plugs must be
attached and grounded for the coil to work,
1and 4 are shared.
2 and 3 are shared.
so to test , you must keep the spark plugs (both or all 4 is best)
attached and the shells of spark plugs grounded.
there is a fuse that powers the coil pack. (usa)
the fuel pump relay sends power to the coil pack.
so of that is dead,so will be the pack. (im reading FSM as it type)
get an FSM.
pin 2 on coil pack is power. 12v.
pin 1,is spark 1&4 drive (fast ECU pulse)
pin 3 is 2&3 coil drive. (scope can see it)

recap, are you using the correct wasted spark testing method.
and are all 4 spark plugs dead.?

If your car has one wire coming out of the distributor at the bottom going to the coil, you can use a test light between thet wire and ground to see if your coil is getting a pulse. If it has a coil pack, then you might need to clean the connector on the coil pack. follow the coil wires from the plug back to find the coil pack. If your car has points in the distributor, you can connect the test whole circuit by hooking the test light across the points. if it's a coil pack, you might replace the crankshaft position sensor to see that does it. also, use the test light to check power to all fuses.

I'd add the information on how to test the coil packs yourself to make it a more complete thread...

QUOTE
How to verify if your coil packs work!
Engine worked with: 1996 maxima
Requires: An ohmmeter (cheap purchase at radio shack....)
Conditions: Make sure your engine is cold, or it'll be hot on your hands
you have 6 Ignition coil packs. 3 up front and 3 near your firewall. (when asking for new ones, they are referred to as L and R)

3 are hidden behind the plastic piece on your engine that says NISSAN... simply remove the bolts and remove the plastic piece.

once removed, you should see 3 coil packs. un plug and test them one at a time.

I won't go into how to remove them since it should be fairly obvious Simply remove both bolts (do one coil pack at a time...) and pull the coil pack out. i had one where it was very hard to get out... so you may have to pull hard...

Once out, look at the area where you removed the electrical plug. You should see a "+" on the back end of the electrical plug. There should also be the letter "B"....
the spot where you see the positive symbol, means that's prong number one on the electrical connector.

To test:
Turn on your ohmmeter and place the positive wire on the 1st prong in the electrical plug of the coil pack. The negative wire should be touching the middle prong. Verification of the ohmmeter at this time should say "0" aka infinite... if it's anything else, the pack should be changed. Next test: reverse the wires... positive on the middle prong and negative on the 1st prong.... on a new coil pack, it should give a value of approximately 1.3-1.7 mega ohms. If any of the readings are off, replace the coil pack.

Note: Firewall coil packs are extremely easy to find, simply look in the cracks of the intake header. you'll see 3 similar looking coil packs to the front ones. The exception with these is that they are longer and look a slight bit different. removal is the same process as the front coil packs. Simply pay special attention to not dropping the screws in the intake area... it'll be hard to get out.

to test: follow the front coil pack testing method. Look for the Positive symbol, this is your first prong... and go from there.
END QUOTE


Good luck (remember rated this help).

it could be anything but i would say you should check the ignition coils first. you can do this by testing the resistance in the coil packs. make sure the engine is off and the key is not in the ignition. if you set your voltmeter to ohms take the 2 ignition wires off of one coil pack. touch your voltmeter lead wires to the 2 posts on the ignition coil. it should read 4000-8000 ohms if you have a bad coil it will usually be close to 0 ohms. do this test for all coil packs. each coil pack ignites 2 cylinders so if you have a v6 you will need to test 3 packs and 4 packs on a v8

Check the spark plug first. then if the plug is good you wil need a digital ohm meter to test the coil pack. if you need to know how to remove the coil pack let me know, to test put on ohms should not have more than 2 1/2 ohms restance betweent coil lead to coil connector. If you test the coil pack on both sides of the pack and get a reading then the coil is bad, if it does not read then you haave a bad fireing plate diode.

I would replace the coil pack. common to fail,

Testing the coil packs.

1. Get an INSULATED wire and hook it to a ground on the car.
2. Get some one to help you
3. pull a spark plug wire off the coil
4. hold grounded wire close to, but not touching, the part where the spark plug wire connects
5. keep hands away from coil and have your helper turn the engine over ( start car and turn off)
6. if there was a spark between the wire and the coil pack it is good. if not, the coil pack needs replaced
7. replace the spark plug wire
8. test the rest